Vitamin B6 deficiency linked to increased early pregnancy loss

Women who have a vitamin B₆ deficiency are less likely to conceive and more likely to have early pregnancy loss than women with adequate intake, according to a study of Chinese women published in the August issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology.

Alayne G. Ronnenberg, ScD, of the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and colleagues prospectively studied 364 Chinese women between 1996 and 1998. The subjects provided daily urine samples for up to 1 year, and human chorionic gonadotropin was assayed to detect conception. Homocysteine, folate, and vitamins B₆ and B₁₂ were measured in preconception plasma.

Women with the highest plasma levels of vitamin B₆ were more than twice as likely to conceive (hazard ratio, 2.2) as those with the lowest level. Compared to women with a vitamin B₆ deficiency, women with adequate intake were less likely to experience early pregnancy loss (odds ratio, 0.7).

Ronnenberg AG, Venners SA, Xu X, et al. Preconception B-vitamin and homocysteine status, conception, and early pregnancy loss. Am J Epidemiol. 2007;166:304-312.